Smoke and Mirrors
by Maetch
Summary: Through good days and bad, through triumph and defeat, as students and as Akuma, Juleka and Rose will always stick together. (AU Drabble collection, multiple prompts)
1. The Beginning

Lunchtime at Collège François Dupont was always one of Rose's favorite parts of the day. It was the place where the barriers between the classes came down and people could mingle. And for her, it was her chance to see what new people were coming into the school. Rose simply loved people, so many different faces and personalities. She was one of the most open-hearted girls anybody could know, and she never had a bad word for anybody. She was just about to bite into her sandwich when she heard an all-too-familiar laugh coming from the corner of the room.

"Heh, look at that, Sabrina," Chloé said with a laugh as she and her toady examined the girl sitting all by her lonesome. She was a rather tall girl wearing all-black, and her deep black bangs were so long that they were shrouding part of her face. "Halloween's come early this year, 'cause we're getting vampires for students now. Seriously, who does your clothing? Dracula or Frankenstein?" The girl merely picked at her lunch and tried her hardest to ignore Chloé's insults. Eventually, she and Sabrina got bored and left, but it seemed like the new girl didn't even notice.

Rose grunted in discomfort at seeing Chloé be her usual self. The Mayor's daughter was one exception to her "no bad word for anybody" rule, but Rose also had a second rule: "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all." Regardless, this girl looked like she needed some cheering up, so she grabbed her food and went to sit next to her.

"Hello!" Rose beamed with a smile in her attempt to break the ice. The girl just looked at her blankly, then went back to her food. "You new here?"

"..."

"My name's Rose," she continued undeterred. "Rose Lavillant."

"... Juleka..."

"Not much of a social girl, huh?" Rose shrugged, her smile never fading. "Don't think bad about it. You're new here, so it can be tough. If anything, you just need a friend."

"... You're not my friend."

"I'm everybody's friend... well, Chloé may be an exception, but she is who she is. And you are who you are. So if you ever need someone to talk to, think of me, okay?"

This time, Juleka allowed herself a small smile. "... Thanks."

The rest of the lunch period continued in silence, with the two girls occasionally exchanging glances at each other. For now, their friendship was small, but as time went on, it would grow and endure until Rose and Juleka were almost never seen apart... and a few years later, this would grow stronger still when the arrival of Hawk Moth introduced to them a strange new aspect of their personalities.

* * *

It was Chloé's birthday party at the Grand Paris, and everybody was invited... that is to say, everybody who was in the immediate social circle of her and her father-slash-Mayor André. There was no place for "peasants" in this gala affair, as the entire front lobby was taken up by tables and affluent people of high social standing. Even the elusive Gabriel Agreste was present. He and André were longtime friends and supporters of each other's affairs, no doubt the reason why Chloé thought his son Adrien to be her destined love. Speaking of whom, poor Adrien leaned on the table half-asleep as Chloé yakked on and on about whatever inane topic she was thinking of. _I wonder what would happen if I used Cataclysm on myself?_ he thought.

Meanwhile, the service entrance was facing an unexpected guest as blasts of light came surging out, hitting the hotel staff and twisting their bodies into that of a distinctive pink harlequin. "Relax. It'll wear off... eventually... maybe," their attacker teased as she sashayed out of the room and into the main lobby.

Outside the front door, the doormen and bodyguards found themselves overwhelmed with potent pink perfume that assaulted their senses so deeply, it literally got to their brains. "Thank you, servants. Now play me onto the dance floor." Entranced by their attacker, they mindlessly sung in obedience as they cleared a path for her to enter.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I am tonight's entertainment." announced Reflekta as she aimed her wrist-compact at everyone. "Just think of this as a makeover party."

"The princess has arrived!" declared Princess Fragrance as she pointed her perfume gun at the crowd. "And her royal highness decrees that there must be dancing, so everybody dance!" However, the two Akuma just then noticed each other.

"Rose?"

"Juleka?"

For a minute, they stood there silently. "You got akumatized again?!" they screamed together. "And you didn't tell me?!"

"Hey, you freaks! I already told you both that you're not invited," butted in Chloé, "so why don't you take your butterflies and flutter off somewhere else?" Upon seeing their mutual object of hatred, Reflekta and Fragrance suddenly grinned evilly. No one saw Adrien quietly slip away through all this ruckus.

* * *

"I came as soon as you called," Ladybug replied as she swung down into the back alley where Chat Noir was waiting for her. "Now what's this about a clown and flower show?"

"See for yourself," Chat replied as he opened the door to let them in through the service entrance. They quietly crept into the lobby, expecting a fight. What they saw was not expected: everybody had been turned into Reflektions and was dancing to slow and melodic ballroom music, the kind one would hear in a fairy-tale movie. They all moved with perfect precision and in unbreakable formation, suggesting that they were all in a deep hypnotic trance. Chloé, meanwhile, had been tied up, gagged, and strung to one of the chandeliers like a pinata. And sitting above it all on the mezzanine railing were the responsible parties.

"Reflekta?" Ladybug gasped, and then she saw the other one. "Princess Fragrance? Since when did you two start working together?"

"We came to a recent understanding," Reflekta began. "One, we're friends through thick and thin, and being Akuma doesn't change that. Two, we found that our powers work even better when put together."

"And three," Fragrance added, "two of us against two of you means you're outnumbered."

"I think your math may be a bit off," Chat taunted back.

"So what? Let's get this over with!" The Reflektions moved out of the way as their Akuma masters flew down to meet the two Miracles in battle. Win or (more likely) lose, Rose and Juleka were going to do this together... as best friends always do.

* * *

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	2. Style Swap

"Why pink?"

That was the question that escaped Juleka's lips as she and Rose sat at lunch. It had been a few weeks now since they first met, and their nascent friendship was to the point where Juleka had no objection to Rose sitting next to her at lunch. Though Juleka seemed to be a little more willing to talk now, she was still rather withdrawn and quiet. So when she asked this out of the blue, the small blonde girl looked surprised.

"Why do I need a reason to like pink?" Rose replied. "But if you need one, I just adore how kind it is. No one has ever been able to say no to pink."

"Not me," Juleka muttered. "Bright pink just isn't my style. Give me dark colors anyday."

They went back to their lunches for a bit, until a sudden glint of inspiration went off in Rose's eyes and she smiled. "You wanna try it?"

"Try what?"

"Try switching colors?" Rose explained. "You go a day in pink, I go in black, and see what happens."

"You really want to do that?" Juleka nearly choked in surprise. "I mean, we haven't even known each other that long and you want us to switch clothes?"

"C'mon, Juleka, it'll be fun. Think of it as my way of showing you what kind of friend I can be." Her eyes went wider than Juleka thought possible as she smiled. "Pleeeeeeease? Just one day? I promise you'll enjoy it." Juleka grunted, somehow finding it hard to say no to those big blue eyes.

The next day, their respective homeroom classes were cracking up as they saw Rose and Juleka's new wardrobes. Juleka was wearing an eye-popping pink t-shirt and jeans that Rose had bought for her. She even had her hair dyed with pink highlights. As to Rose, she had done the opposite and was wearing some black lace clothes which Juleka let her borrow along with dyed black hair. Rose's smile never seemed to fade, but Juleka looked positively mortified.

The day after, Juleka really let Rose have it. She snapped and argued for up to an hour over her humiliation. But in the end, she couldn't help but laugh with Rose over how ridiculous the whole idea was. That said, she made sure to reiterate: "That's the last time I let you talk me into anything."

It wouldn't be.

* * *

 _Present day..._

"Kind of ironic now that I think about it," Reflekta chatted and she and Princess Fragrance hopped the rooftops. "Back then, I couldn't stand pink, but now I can't help but love it... in moderation."

"See, I told you," Fragrance replied. "Nobody can say no to pink, though black isn't too shabby, either." She spun around a bit to show off her Akuma wardrobe. "Say what you will about Hawk Moth, but he's pretty stylish in his costume designs."

Reflekta allowed herself a smile. "True. Anyway, you know he's gonna snap at us eventually, so we better get busy on luring Ladybug out."

"I got just the thing," Fragrance spoke up. As Reflekta listened to her friend's idea, she frowned in discomfort. Even as an Akuma, Rose's ideas tended to be questionable at best, but Juleka never seemed to know when to say no.

She wouldn't have it any other way.

* * *

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	3. Miracusona

_In a slightly-different time and place..._

"Attention all students and faculty! Incoming Akuma!" announced the PA system. Upon hearing those words, everybody in Collège François Dupont immediately took action. Doors were locked, drapes were closed, and lights were turned off. Anything that got the Akuma's interest away from innocent people was the idea.

"Wonder who Chloé cheesed off this time?" Nino grumbled as he ducked under his desk as per the drill. It was no secret at this point that if an Akuma was at the school, nine times out of ten it was Chloé's fault for pushing the right buttons on someone and driving them into Hawk Moth's mitts. Fortunately, Ladybug was usually never far away and was already on-site to deal with the crisis. But then he noticed that someone was missing... two someones in fact.

With a burst of red light from inside the bathroom, skintight fabric with magical properties resistant to almost any known attack, formed all over her body. Her yo-yo formed at her waist, and the spotted red-and-black mask appeared just below her short blonde hair. Ladybug poked her head out and quickly dashed down the halls to the courtyard, her enhanced strength allowing her to cross the gap in record time.

Finally, she came out to see the Akuma in question, who looked like a deranged gym coach in a mask. "So, you can dish it out but can't take it, huh?!" He called out to Chloé as he kept flinging rubber balls at her as fast as they materialized in his hands. "Think just because you're the Mayor's daughter, you're too good for some good ol' fashioned dodgeball?" Chloé had no reply as she just kept getting beaned with the balls. But then Ladybug giggled at seeing her get taken down a few pegs and the Akuma turned. "Be right back. It looks like I've got a change in the gameplan." He threw a ball at Ladybug, which she dodged only to have it explode right behind her.

"Listen, you big meanie," Ladybug called out as she flung her yo-yo every which way to stop the incoming volleys. "Chloé may be annoying, but that gives you no right to blow her up." As she spoke, her eyes were looking all over for any kind of telltale object that could be holding a black butterfly. The gym whistle he wore around his neck looked as good as any, but she got too distracted to see a ball coming right for her head at a speed she couldn't dodge.

Suddenly, a black-suited figure leapt in front of Ladybug and swung her staff at the ball, sending it flying high and exploding harmlessly. "Hey, princess, need a paw?" Chat Noir said as she offered her hand to her friend and partner. The raven-black hair and costume only made her green eyes stand out more.

"For you, always." Ladybug smiled as she spun her yo-yo in preparation. The Akuma laughed in arrogance as the two Miracles bounded into battle.

* * *

Before long, the battle was won. The Akuma was properly de-akumatized, a Miraculous Restoration swept through the school to fix the damage, and two missing girls came into their homeroom.

"I found her," Juleka announced to Ms. Bustier as she dragged Rose into the classroom. "She was in the bathroom when it all went down, so I was out looking for her."

"Yeah... good old Juleka, always looking out for me," Rose added. The teacher was not impressed, but let it slide as the students took their seats and class resumed. As Rose and Juleka settled down, their thoughts went to the masked superheroes that always seemed to appear when needed most and who they could be... even though neither had any clue that they were much closer than they thought.

Or maybe they did, as the two girls shot a knowing wink at each other. After all, why should secrets come between friends?

* * *

"Lavillant!" Ms. Mendeleiev snapped at Rose as her ruler smacked the desk. "Pay attention!" Stirred from her daydreaming, Rose looked around and realized she was just in science class. She was not Ladybug, and Juleka was not Chat Noir. With a sigh, she sat forward and tried to listen to the teacher, but she couldn't help but steal a glance at Juleka who sat next to her.

 _Even if we aren't the heroes, we could still be like them in other ways,_ she told herself. _For starters, very close friends._

* * *

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	4. Coffee Shop

_In a possible future..._

"Welcome to Smoke & Mirrors Café," announced Princess Fragrance as she greeted the tourists. "Please, have a seat and we'll be right with you."

Nearby, Reflekta gestured to a table and handed out menus. "Don't worry, there's no mind-control or body-warping here," she spoke. "We're just simple Akuma looking to make an honest living." The tourists looked a little weirded out, but took their seats and began reading. It wasn't long before they forgot about the Akuma's presence and were happily talking with her as they made their orders. Having the flowers and their calming scent nearby helped a bit in that regard, as well, while the reflective decorations made things bright and optimistic as they caught the light from the sun.

It had now been over ten years since Ladybug and Chat Noir first came to Paris, a day that would be known as "The Coming of the Miracles". In that time, many had bore witness to their heroics as new allies joined them and new enemies challenged them, and their legacy grew further. It ultimately culminated when Mayor André Bourgeois, as his last act in office before retiring, announced the construction of a new city park in their honor, simply named Miracle Park.

And in the corner of Miracle Park, just past the main square where stone statues of the Miraculous heroes stood in eternal vigil, was an outdoor café run by two costumed "supervillains" who had since reformed and now wanted to help spread the legend further. This was Smoke & Mirrors, a place where Parisians could enjoy some leisurely snackage and coffee while under the watchful eyes of their protectors.

It was a crazy idea, so naturally it was Rose's. She felt that after all the trouble they caused for Paris over the years under Hawkmoth's command, she and Juleka should try to give back to the city they never held any ill will towards, to which Juleka wholeheartedly agreed with. It took all their life's savings and some deals with the now-current Mayor Chloé Bourgeois (who thankfully had improved significantly as a person since becoming a Miracle herself) to get everything squared away, but the payoff was worth it. People came from all over Paris and beyond for a chance to enjoy some coffee and learn the history of the heroes, as only those who were there for it could describe.

So while Reflekta talked with her guests about some of Ladybug's past heroics, Fragrance was busy behind the counter getting their coffee. It was a good thing being an Akuma made her much faster and more dexterous than normal, because she was almost like a blur running around the counter, dodging the employees who were helping with cleaning and filling other orders, and getting the coffee to them without spilling so much as a drop. By the time the tourists left, they were in high spirits and it reflected in their tip.

* * *

It was nighttime and the café was now closed. Their emotional highs relaxed, Juleka and Rose had let themselves return to normal as they sat at a table and sipped some coffee of their own while counting the day's profits. As they worked, another customer arrived to meet them, and they smiled upon seeing who she was.

"Oh... hello, Sabrina," came Rose's chipper reply.

"Hey, girls," gestured Sabrina Raincomprix as she took the seat across from them. From beneath her business coat's pocket, Nooroo poked his head out to give the girls a smile and a wave before hiding again. "I'm just getting back home from work, so I just want a cup of black and some licorice."

"Coming up!" Rose got up and went to the counter to get Sabrina's order.

"So, I hope you two aren't causing a stir," Sabrina began as she sat down. "I know how _troublesome_ you get when you're together and restless."

Juleka put her hand to her chest. "Heavens, no," she swore. "We're good little Akuma, remember? After all, you trusted us enough to let us keep our powers when we asked."

"And you're much nicer than Hawk Moth was at being the boss of us," Rose added as she delivered the coffee and a couple licorice strands, the latter which Nooroo flew out to grab and nibble on. "To think we of all people would be evil again... utterly ridiculous, as Chloé would say."

Sabrina laughed a little bit at the mention of Chloé. She had come a long way, possibly the longest, since the days of being Chloé's spineless minion, but being the Butterfly was a heavy burden as she had to deal with both the negative reputation Hawk Moth left her. Even as an adult, people would still panic when she approached them with an offer to share in her power. Her expression turned serious. "Well, I've been hearing reports on an unknown assailant hanging around this park. Whatever it is, it's not human, as I can't get a lock on its emotions." Sabrina sipped her coffee with a stern gaze. "I thought maybe you two might have heard something during your shift?"

Both Rose and Juleka shook their heads. "Believe me," Juleka spoke up, "if we had heard something, we would have called you."

For a while, the girls simply sat and chatted, enjoying a chance to catch up on their social lives. Just as Sabrina was about to get up and leave, a loud roar from outside made all three of their heads turn in attention. "I think I just found him," Sabrina deadpanned. "Nooroo, transform me!"

"I would be honored," the small Kwami replied as he flew into Sabrina's brooch. A second later, her business attire faded into a distinctive violet bodysuit adorned with silver highlights and a mask. Her scepter, originally a cane but slightly redesigned to better suit her feminine preference, materialized in her hand. Like a butterfly emerging from its cocoon, Sabrina's compassion and empathy emerged from the meek and unassuming girl she was. Her imago, to use a scientific term. The name was so fitting when she first got the Butterfly that it had since stuck.

Now ready for battle, Imago turned to Juleka and Rose. "Since you're here, perhaps you'd like to help?" Her hands glowed with energy. Rose and Juleka didn't hesitate as they took her hands and let the energy transform them to their Akuma selves instantly. Now instead of just one hero, there was three. Together, they went outside to face the enemy waiting for them.

* * *

 _This one I'm actually proud of. It's a chance to share some of my own little headcanons. I'll probably do a couple more in this setting._ _Also, I am using the relapse concept from my other ML fic to explain how the Akuma keep returning._

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	5. Picture Perfect

"ERRRRRRRRRGH!"

Rose nearly jumped as the despaired scream of Juleka echoed out from nearby. She turned to see her friend looking utterly mortified. "You okay?" Rose asked.

"The jinx strikes again!" Juleka complained. "I went to get my photo taken for our new student IDs. The light was perfect, the angle was perfect, no birds or anything to fly in. He takes the photo... just as I sneeze."

"Aw, c'mon. Don't tell me you still believe in that." Rose rolled her big blue eyes in disappointment. "I thought we broke that silly thing after... well, your first time with Ladybug."

"Trust me, the jinx is not so easily broken." Juleka gave Rose her phone with a saved picture on it, then began eating her lunch.

Rose sighed. "It can't be that-" Her train of thought stopped when she saw exactly how bad it was. "Ouch."

"I know, right?" Juleka bit into her sandwich. "There's no way I'm having that photo haunt me for the next school year, but the cameraman leaves today and I can't get him to reshoot."

Rose thought to herself, trying to think of a solution. Finally, a smile crossed her face. "I've got just the thing. Meet me in the courtyard after class."

* * *

 _After class..._

"Are you sure about this?" Juleka moaned as she sat in front of Rose's makeshift photo scene. A tarp from the storage had been draped over a stack of boxes, which Ivan and Kim helped set up, and a few were placed to give Juleka a chair. Max had set up some lights to help ensure an optimal shot.

"Positive," she replied as she set up the digital camera she had borrowed from one of her friends in another class. "All I have to do is have the cameraman use this instead of the one he took. I'm sure he'll understand."

"But the jinx-"

"There is no jinx, Juleka. Now smile." The gloomy girl managed to do so as Rose set up the shot. "Hope the battery doesn't die," she muttered as she saw the blinking warning light. After about a minute, her finger hit the trigger and a resounding flash went off. "There! Now let's see." Rose looked down to see the digital image as confirmation of the successful shot. Instead...

MEMORY FULL. PHOTO WAS NOT SAVED.

Rose gulped. If the battery died now, she would lose the shot, and it was a very good shot. Not a bad angle or shadow anywhere. "Well?" Juleka called out. "How'd it come out?"

"Ummmm... it... came out perfect!"

"Great! Lemme see."

"NO!" Rose held the camera away from Juleka as she approached. "I mean... I need to.. uh, edit the colors a bit."

Juleka looked a bit doubtful. "You said it was perfect."

"And it is, but you want it to look truly radiant, right?" Juleka paused, but managed to nod. With that, Rose fled for the computer lab as fast as she could. She had to get the photo hard-saved before the battery died.

She didn't quite make it.

* * *

 _About a week later..._

"Check it out! The new IDs are here!" Juleka sounded positive as she sat next to Rose and showed her the card. "I don't know how you did it, but you did it."

"Yeah... I did it, all right." Rose managed a smile as she saw the results of her handiwork. The photo she wanted to use got deleted due to the battery dying, so she ended up having to improvise, ultimately taking an obscure celebrity photo from the Internet and photoshopping Juleka's head from a photo on her phone onto the body. It looked simply ridiculous in how badly it meshed, but so long as Juleka was happy, who was Rose to complain?

* * *

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	6. Summertime

"Cannonball!" Rose yelled as she dove off the diving board and into the swimming pool. It was a hot Summer day in Paris, and the kids of Ms. Bustier's class were enjoying a chance to unwind and enjoy themselves at the pool. As she surfaced and swam around in relaxation, however, Rose sighed as she saw Juleka huddled underneath a pool-umbrella. She was wearing a large black sunhat and robe that combined with the umbrella was totally cloaking her in shade.

Rose swam over to near Juleka's spot, where her friend was reading a book. Some kind of self-help book on emotions, it seemed. She coughed a bit to get her attention, and then twice, but Juleka didn't seem to notice. Finally, Rose sprinkled a bit of water at her. "Hey!" she complained. "C'mon, Rose. This is a borrowed book."

"Really, Juleka?" Rose snapped. "We've got some time off from school and you're spending it looking like some kind of sad-sack? C'mon! Get into the pool for once."

"I don't like the Summer too much. You know that I sunburn easily."

"But would you just-?"

"I said no." With that, Juleka turned away and went back to her book. Rose puffed her cheeks out in frustration. She would have re-akumatized right then and there had she not remembered that this was supposed to be a happy day where nobody was feeling miserable (there would be time for that later). Leaning back in the pool, Rose thought to herself. Juleka was always difficult in the Summer, never seeming able to enjoy herself because she always complained about the sun. She wanted so badly to change that, but how could she do it short of just throwing her into the pool? Doing that would only make her mad, likely cause her to re-akumatize, and ruin it for everybody. Rose looked back at her, who seemed oblivious to all but her book, and she sighed again.

* * *

Later, the pool was closing up for the night and the students were made to leave. After showering and changing, Rose left feeling like she had wasted the whole day. However, she noticed that Juleka was not anywhere with the group. "Juleka?" she called out as she went back inside looking for her friend. "Juleka? Where are you?" As she approached the pool, however, she saw something she wasn't expecting. Sitting at the side of the pool was a lone figure wearing a pink bikini on her ivory-white skin.

"Oh, hey," Reflekta waved back. "Was hoping you'd come looking."

Rose blinked. "Juleka?" she gasped. "Who made you upset this time? I swear, if it was Chloé again, I'll-"

"No, I did it myself."

"Yourself?"

Reflekta pulled out the book she was reading earlier. "It was a hunch I had since we first started palling up. If our transformations are triggered by emotions, then there's got to be a way we can control when it happens. Well, I was studying up on some of the ideas in this book on how to focus our feelings, and I decided to put them to use once the pool cleared out and I could get some quiet ambiance." She smiled. "Not too shabby, huh?"

Rose giggled, but then looked confused. "And the bikini?"

"Something I found out by accident when I transformed. Turns out my power isn't just limited to making others look like me." With a wave of her hand, Reflekta transformed her appearance into her usual dress, then to normal Juleka, then for a laugh to Chloé before returning to her bikini.

"Wow. You're essentially a one-woman costume party." Rose was amazed. "You think I may have other powers, too?"

"Well, if you want to find out, I can help teach you. You're always doing so much for me, so I want to do something for you." Reflekta grabbed a bath towel and laid it on the floor. "Here, sit down and cross your legs."

"Alright." With a nod, Rose went into a meditative stance.

"Close your eyes and take deep breaths." Rose did so. "Now, think deeply about things that aggravate you. Things that just make you angry or upset."

"Does it have to be bad things?"

"It's what worked for me. Now, every time you find something that gets you upset, latch onto that thought." Rose's expression looked twisted as she dug through her thoughts for the things that made her mad, which for her were things she did not like thinking of. "Let the feelings well up in you like a shaken bottle of soda. Then, when it hits critical mass, just let it explode." As Rose kept thinking, she could feel a fluttering within her... like a butterfly. She almost shuddered as her mind just kept churning with all sorts of negative emotions, pushing harder and harder on her mind and soul, until finally her eyes shot open and she gasped in shock as black clouds enveloped her from head to toe. When it was over, Princess Fragrance sat in her place.

"Whoa..." Fragrance was almost sweating as her vision refocused. She felt herself all over, recognizing the puffed-up pantaloons and bunned hair of her other self but not quite believing that she could summon it at will. "It... it worked, right?" she asked. "Not just Hawk Moth playing tricks on my mind?"

"Definitely." Reflekta smiled, happy that her friend was happy as well.

"Hey!" called out the lifeguard as he came into the pool with a flashlight. "I said the pool's closed, kids, so-" He didn't get to finish that sentence, as Fragrance instinctively went for her perfume gun and gave him a blast. Once the pink mist dissipated, the lifeguard dropped to his knee. _"At your service, Princess Fragrance..."_ he droned in that familiar sing-song tone.

Fragrance got to her feet. "Lock the doors, servant," she commanded, quickly getting into character. "My friend and I are going to swim for a while." She turned to Reflekta. "Though I could use something to wear."

"Of course." With a quick zap of her wrist, Reflekta changed Fragrance's outfit into a one-piece black swimsuit, exposing her now-green skin more fully. "After all, the night is ours." Smiling, the two Akuma stepped into the pool and waded around, simply enjoying the peace and quiet of each other's company. No Ladybug, no Hawk Moth, just the girls being both of themselves.

* * *

 _Just some more of my headcanon ideas._

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	7. Comedy and Tragedy

"Aw, come ON, Juleka," whined Rose as she and Juleka stood in line at the movie theater. "Why can't we go see the new comedy I've been wanting to see?"

"Because it's my night to pick the movie," came Juleka's matter-of-fact answer as she approached the booth. "Two for _Lost Souls of the Ages_ , please?" The clerk took her money and handed over the tickets.

"But a tragedy? It's just so sad," Rose argued.

"That's the point." Juleka led the way down the hall into the appointed room. "And besides, you know what happens whenever we go see a comedy. You laugh so loudly that it gets us in trouble with the usher for disturbing the movie." Rose crossed her arms and put on a pouty expression, which still didn't do much to make her look less cute. Nonetheless, she took her seat and waited for the movie to begin.

The lights dimmed and soon the movie was running its title sequence. Rose leaned back in boredom while Juleka watched without so much as a blink. It was a film about two immortal lovers, a man and a woman, from thousands of years ago whose paths crossed again and again through crucial points in history, and every time they met, they would never seem to recognize each other since their names and appearances would change with the times (not that the audience noticed any changes in their looks since it was always so obvious). They would fall in love each time, and it would get to the point where one was so close to recognizing the other, but it would always end in a tragic stroke of fate that separated them once more.

"Oh, come on. How can they be that dense?" Rose quietly complained as she watched the current scene. "They're wearing flimsy domino masks. How can they NOT recognize each other this time?" Juleka said nothing as her eyes began welling up with tears over the immortal couple's romantic discussion as they danced in a Parisian ballroom. She even had to pause to blow her nose... loudly. This got a dirty look from the usher and a few of the other patrons.

Finally, the film seemed to be going into its climax. A third immortal had introduced himself and was trying to take the woman away, taunting the man by saying that his lover was right under his nose all this time without him even knowing. "What?! Since when was there three?!" Rose freaked at the new character's introduction. Determined to save her, the man engaged his enemy in a swordfight, but the woman ran right in the middle of it and got run through with the blade by accident, driving him to despair. "I thought they were immortal. No one said they were able to die from swords. Right, Juleka?" Rose turned to see her friend on the verge of crying her eyes out. "Juleka?"

And cry she did, so much that the usher had to step in.

* * *

"Sorry about ruining the movie..." Juleka apologized as she and Rose left, ignoring the usher's glaring face. She turned to Rose. "I guess I'm not much better than you at keeping myself calm, am I?"

"Eh, don't worry too much about it," Rose replied. "I think if anything, we're just too emotional for the theater."

Juleka nodded. "From now on, we wait for Netflix."

"Agreed." Sharing a smile and a hug, the girls made their way for the Metro stop.

* * *

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	8. Gift

Gabriel Agreste stepped out of his limousine, a perpetual scowl on his stone-cold face as always. As THE biggest name in fashion and merchandising in all of Paris, Gabriel had no time to waste on fools. He was a man who always knew what he wanted and always got it, and anybody who got in his way was quickly trampled underfoot. Such as the small girl in the pink overcoat who approached him as he made his way to the front door of his mansion, only barely avoiding a collision with the tall businessman. A large sunhat covered her face in shadow and made it impossible to see her clearly.

"Hello, sir. I represent Perfect Perfumes," she greeted in a sweet tone. "We're in the neighborhood and-"

"I don't want any."

"Don't be like that. Here, have a free sample." Before Gabriel could tell her off again, the girl drew a strange device and squeezed the trigger, enveloping him in a deep pink fog of perfume. He felt his mind going hazy, and then completely blank. The girl then removed her sunhat and coat, revealing the green and grinning face of Princess Fragrance. "So, what do you think, sir?" she replied.

Gabriel bowed in obedience, his mind and body no longer his own to command. _"At your service, Princess Fragrance..."_ he sung.

"Excellent! Grab your checkbook, Mr. Agreste, because we're going shopping for my friend's birthday!" Gesturing to him with the perfume gun, Fragrance ordered Gabriel to the limo and hopped in after him. After spritzing Gorilla the chauffeur, she then ordered him to drive off.

From his window upstairs, Gabriel's son Adrien saw the whole thing. He did not look happy.

* * *

Avenue des Champs-Élysées was one of the most famous streets in Paris, and especially in regards to retail shopping. Only the finest merchandise was sold here, the kind of items that an average citizen couldn't readily afford. But neither Gabriel Agreste nor Princess Fragrance were average. For the past two hours, Fragrance was leading Gabriel and Gorilla down the avenue on a big shopping spree. They would enter a store, she would intimidate the clerks into letting her browse without distraction, and then she would buy as much as Gorilla's arms could carry. After Gabriel paid for it all, they would leave and repeat. Over time, she had to hypnotize some of the security guards to aid in carrying her bags, as well as keep nosy people from getting in her way.

 _"I... love a parade!"_ Fragrance sung in happiness as Gabriel, Gorilla, and a small army of bag-loaded security guards made their way down the avenue. _"The tramping of feet, I love every beat I hear of a drum!"_

"Well, I hate to rain on it, princess," called out a voice from above. Chat Noir dropped down in front of her, staff in hand and a scowl on his face. "Actually, I need to, given the circumstances."

Fragrance scowled at seeing the Miracle appear to challenge her. "Do you mind? I'm shopping for a friend."

"Not on his budget, you're not!" Chat replied, a hint of anger in his voice as he glanced at the entranced Gabriel. "Piece of advice, Fragrance. You need money? Go out and get a job." Fragrance fired a blast of pink perfume, but Chat was already familiar with this trick and spun his staff incredibly fast. The cloud was blown away from him and dissipated.

Her first attack failed, Fragrance then turned to the guards and Gorilla. "Protect your Princess! And get his Miraculous while you're at it!"

 _"At your service, Princess Fragrance!"_ they all sang in unison as they dropped their bags and rushed Chat. The Miracle did his best to push them away, trying not to rough them up too much as he could easily break bones with a single punch if not careful. While he struggled, he saw Fragrance preparing another shot with her gun. Thinking fast, Chat threw his staff at her, striking her in her gut and knocking her over. Akuma were more resilient, so he didn't have to hold back as much.

Chat bounded out of the crowd and reclaimed his staff. He had to lure Fragrance away from the onlookers, not so much for their sake as for Rose's own. If people knew who she really was, she would be in really big trouble with the law. "Hey, Princess," he called out. Using his staff to pole-vault, he leaped up to the awnings of the storefronts and stood on a rooftop overlooking her. "Think you can CAT-ch up to me?"

Setting her gun to full-blast, Fragrance fired at her feet and let the propulsion launch her at Chat like a rocket. At her speed, the impact could make her a dangerous projectile, but it also meant she couldn't turn on a dime even if she wanted to. And as she came within arm's reach of Chat, it was exactly what he was counting on. At the last second, he held his unbreakable staff out in Fragrance's path and made her hit it headfirst. Fragrance felt herself ricocheting over Chat's head, spinning out of control, and collapsing on the roof in an unconscious heap. She wouldn't be permanently hurt thanks to her Akuma resilience, but she'd no doubt be nursing a bad headache for a while.

Chat smashed her perfume gun with his staff, sending a black butterfly fluttering out. He sighed, knowing that no matter how many times they would get purified or otherwise eliminated, another one of these bugs would inevitably grow within their hosts. He wasn't sure exactly how, but it just did. "Cataclysm." Feeling anti-matter (at least that's what he thought it was) surge in his hand, Chat grabbed the butterfly and let it disintegrate on contact. It was how he dealt with Akuma in Ladybug's absence. Her power removed for now, Fragrance's body vanished in a cloud of black mist, leaving an unconscious Rose in her place.

* * *

Fortunately, Chat had learned through past encounters with Fragrance that smelling-salts were surprisingly effective in snapping people out of her trances, and had grabbed some before heading out to meet her. Once everybody was back to normal, the first thing Gabriel did was send all of her ill-gotten merchandise back and demand full refunds for it all. As to Rose, Chat quickly got her home while she was still dazed from her de-akumatization. Just before he left, with less than thirty seconds before timing out, he wondered what it would take to permanently free the Akuma from their sad fate short of finally capturing Hawk Moth.

The next day, Juleka had to confront Rose in private and so they met in a small alley behind Collège François Dupont during lunch time. "You went through all that just to get birthday presents for me?" Juleka scowled as she heard Rose relay her tale. "Rose Lavillant, I'm disappointed in you. Reducing yourself to a common criminal out of greed... shameful."

"I... I..." Rose looked like she was about to cry, and not just from her throbbing headache. "I just wanted... to buy you some nice things..." she moped. "But it was all so pricey and... and... then Chloé taunted me by saying I didn't have a rich daddy like she and Adrien did... and then I got so sad that..."

"Rose, isn't your friendship to me enough?"

"Yeah, but..." she bowed her head in shame.

"But nothing. You being my friend is my favorite gift." This seemed to make Rose smile a bit. "Besides..." she added with a sly smirk, "you should've invited me along."

* * *

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	9. Bump in the Night

"Congratulations, Juleka," announced Rose as she came onboard the Couffaine houseboat with her backpack. "You are now the host of your very first sleepover. Isn't it awesome?"

Juleka looked a bit hesitant. "I'd hardly call just one guest a sleepover."

"But it's been a year since we first became friends," reiterated Rose as she brushed her ponytail aside (having grown it out over the past year). "I figured that would be a perfect reason to celebrate."

"You sure don't need much of a reason to celebrate," Juleka admitted. Just then, Juleka's mother came up to meet them. A pleasant-looking woman with her own grey hair tied up into a braid but with a much more colorful wardrobe and cheerier expression than her daughter, she took one look at Rose and was all over her. The two of them spent a good amount of time talking about this and that, and Juleka wondered if perhaps Rose could switch houses with her.

* * *

The sleepover actually went pretty well by Juleka's standards. They spent some time chatting, had a few snacks, and shared a couple of movies. Rose even managed to talk Juleka into letting her do her hair some, remembering the time they switched outfits and figuring that she'd look good with some highlights. Juleka actually agreed, though she insisted on a more purplish color this time. Finally, though, it was time to sleep. Getting under her sleeping bag, Juleka fluffed her pillow and drifted off.

Rose, on the other hand, was not having a good time of it. It had been two hours since they settled down for the night and she couldn't seem to relax. The living room was actually quite unnerving in the dark. First of all, having not slept on a boat before was making Rose a bit restless. It was also a rather windy night outside and the rocking of the boat caused the reflected light from outside to shift around, creating a lot of moving shadows that only made her more unable to drift off.

At first she tried to bury her head under the pillow, but it only made her hot. Then she tried some warm milk from the kitchen. All it did was make her use the bathroom in a half-hour. And as the night went on, Rose got more and more aggravated over her surroundings. Finally, in an act of desperation, she looked over to Juleka, who seemed completely unfazed by all of this. Rose grabbed her pillow and readjusted herself.

* * *

When daybreak finally came, Mrs. Couffaine came down below deck to see a rather adorable sight. There was Rose cuddled up next to Juleka like a tiny kitten next to its mother, and Juleka had her arm draped over her. Both girls had deep and content smiles on their faces.

* * *

 _After all the action of the last one, it's nice to have a short and happy scene._

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	10. Top of the World at Midnight

It was New Year's Eve in Paris.

Contrary to popular belief, the majority of the festivities were centered around the Arc de Triomphe, leaving the Eiffel Tower mostly empty save for confused American tourists and some drunkards. Which was fine for two young superpowered girls of dubious morality. They wanted some alone time, away from all the lights and noise and especially the Miracles who were patrolling the celebration in case Hawk Moth decided to crash it. With any luck, he was focusing on other Akuma tonight and not paying attention to Reflekta and Princess Fragrance.

The girls had climbed all the way to the top of the broadcasting array on the very top of the tower. The hum of the machinery droned on incessantly as they simply sat there on the antenna. No fighting, no sabotaging, just sitting. What few workers were here on this night wisely let them stay without a fight. They weren't paid enough to mess with any Akuma. And so they sat in solitude, the starry sky above and the lit-up cityline below.

"I've been up here lots of times," Reflekta absently admitted, "but never this close to the sky before."

"And when you look down there," Fragrance continued as she gazed over the aptly-named City of Lights, "it's almost like you're an angel on high."

Reflekta bowed her head. "Too bad we're no angels." Fragrance nodded in agreement.

If there was one thing Rose and Juleka loved about being Akuma, it was the sheer freedom it offered. Stronger, faster, more durable, they could go places and do things they couldn't as normal people. But they knew it came at a price, one that Hawk Moth continued to drill into their heads whenever he could find the time to do so.

Reclining back as best as she could on her improvised perch, Reflekta sighed. "We should have been stronger back then," she continued. "We should have been able to say no."

"It's not your fault. We were in a hard place when it happened, and he preyed on us."

"Me, I can understand, but you? You're the one person I could never see getting akumatized. You're always smiling and singing and being cheerful."

Fragrance frowned. "Even I have my moments. But at the very least, we're suffering together."

"Hear, hear." The sounds of cheering and excitement echoed up from below, indicating that it wouldn't be long now before the stroke of midnight when the year changed, among other things. For a moment, the Akuma stayed quiet and just listened.

"Hey, Juleka," Fragrance suddenly spoke up. "You ever wonder if perhaps... well..."

"Yeah?"

"Perhaps... we could be the good guys for once?" Reflekta looked a bit confused at that. "I mean, think about it. Ladybug and Chat Noir are facing a crisis in one place, but they can't be everywhere. We could find some local problem going on, like a mugger or something, and encourage him to be nice in our own unique way. Some spritzes here, some zaps there, and he'll have learned his lesson."

"What about Hawk Moth?"

"What about him?"

"Well, don't you think he'll be just a little upset that his so-called supervillains are suddenly being good guys?" Reflekta matter-of-factly stated. "You've seen what happens with Nathaniel when he tries to play hero."

"But the point is he's trying." Fragrance took her friend's hand. "We're not his slaves, Juleka, at least not totally. And I can't explain it, but it almost feels like whenever we transform, something's trying to push us into doing good for people."

"A higher power?" The pink-clad Akuma raised an eyebrow at that. "You really think some force is trying to make us superheroes?"

"I'm saying we should at least be trying harder to behave. Who knows? Maybe one of these days, it'll pay off."

"Alright, but let's not behave too much. We do have a reputation to uphold for now..." Reflekta smiled, "and I have to admit that it's actually kind of fun being a bit of a troublemaker."

"Oh, definitely. Just got to remember that the boss is not someone we want to make a career with." Fragrance stood up, balancing herself on the perch as she helped Reflekta up. "Well, it's almost midnight now. Wanna make that our resolution?"

Reflekta raised her hands and smiled as her friend held them against each other. "I resolve to be less of a menace to Paris and Ladybug and more in control of my emotions."

"Same here. And let's resolve that no matter what happens, we do it together." They could hear the crowd counting down the last ten seconds now. Ten seconds to change. Reflekta and Fragrance simply looked at each other, each seeing the strong emotion for their friendship in their eyes. An emotion Hawk Moth could never hope to snuff out. Finally, with a shared shrug, they pulled into a deep and loving kiss.

And as they shared that kiss, the entire city screamed in celebration of the new year.

* * *

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	11. Pinky Promise

It was a quiet day in Paris, but Rose was not feeling especially cheerful as she picked at her lunch, Juleka came over to meet with her as usual. "Hey," she greeted. Rose didn't respond, which got Juleka concerned. "You feeling okay?" Her only reply was a low moan. "Chloé didn't get to you again, did she?"

"It's just..." Rose winced. "Am I really capable of being so... mean?"

Juleka now understood the problem. "So, you remember now, huh?" Rose nodded. Being de-akumatized for the first time always left one feeling like there was a great big blank in their memory, but slowly it would piece itself back together, and then it was all a matter of how the person dealt with the thought that they willingly wrought so much chaos. "Aw, don't think like that, Rose. It's not your fault."

"But it is. I'm the one who wanted to be with Prince Ali so badly, and when Hawk Moth gave me that power... I felt so incredible, so confident, like nobody could ever say no to me ever again." Rose bowed her head in shame. "It's not mind-control like everybody thinks, Juleka. I still had my free will, but I was so overwhelmed with thoughts of power and obsession that nothing else mattered anymore."

"Look, Rose, I've been down that road too," Juleka consoled. "I was so upset that nobody was noticing me that when Hawk Moth gave me powers, something snapped and I wanted to make everybody see me now that I was powerful... even you. And again, I'm sorry for Reflektifying you, by the way." She put a hand on Rose's shoulder and managed a smile. "At least your obsession had good intentions. You wanted Ali because you both cared so much for people. I was just selfish."

Rose smiled back upon hearing her friend's supportive words. "Well, I guess that makes sense."

"Speaking of Ali, how'd it go with him once you... calmed down? I never did ask."

"We had about an hour to have some fun before his bodyguards caught up to us, but I managed to show him around Paris a bit. Brought him to a café I liked, then we swung by the children's hospital where the kids were waiting for him. You should have seen all those smiles as we helped pass out the toys." The small blonde sighed in delight. "Afterwards, before he had to leave, Ali said that it was the most fun he had in over a year."

"Princess Fragrance notwithstanding, right?"

"He actually admitted to being a bit flattered over my efforts. Could have done without the mind-control spray, though." Juleka smiled at hearing this, but then looked a bit worried. "What's up?"

"It's what I really wanted to tell you. Did you hear about Alya and Nathaniel?" Rose shook her head no. "Turns out, another Akuma made them re-transform, and now everybody's worried that they could all turn back again. They're not sure what to make of it, so they're just trying their hardest to ignore their fear."

Rose sighed. "I had a feeling that it wasn't going to be so easy to get out of this." She looked at her dark-haired friend. "So what do WE do?"

"Same as always, I guess. Try to keep our emotions under control, don't give Hawk Moth or anybody else a chance to exploit us... and if it does happen again, we remember that we're always going to be there for each other." Juleka held out her pinky finger. "Swear on it?"

"Gladly." The girls linked their pinky fingers together to swear their promise, just as the bell rang to announce the end of the lunch break.

* * *

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	12. Night In

It was a rainy night in Paris. Everybody who was anybody was doing the smart thing and staying indoors, which was just as well for Juleka as it was her turn to do the monthly budget. Rent, food, transportation, the business expenses for running Smoke & Mirrors, and so on. She looked up from her ledgers and the laptop she was using to calculate and watched the rain fall through the apartment window, bored to tears with number-crunching.

Growing up, Juleka had never thought too much about her future, thinking that any lifestyle with as little human interaction as possible was good enough. Since meeting Rose, she could now never imagine being alone. The two of them were so close that when it was time to move into adulthood, neither was willing to go their separate way. So they put their funds together and got a small apartment. Not a particularly-fancy one, but it at least didn't have a leaky roof. Juleka thanked the powers above for the success of Smoke & Mirrors being the one thing that kept them afloat.

The door clicked open and Rose stepped inside, covered head to toe in pink raingear and clutching groceries as close to her chest as possible while still holding her umbrella. "It's getting pretty bad out there tonight," Rose removed her boots and socks and walked over to the kitchen table where Juleka was sitting. "So, how's the budget?" she asked as she put away the food items.

"Eh, we're stable, but as always, there's not much left for ourselves once everything's paid for the month." Rose moaned in disappointment at Juleka's response. "Aw, don't get like that. I'm still putting some Euros into our savings as always."

"Yeah. That's for emergencies, though. I'm talking the kind of cash we can burn off on something nice every now and then."

Juleka sighed as she watched Rose towel off her hair. "You're always like this when we're working the budget, always moaning about the haves and have-nots." She pushed her ledgers aside and closed up the laptop. "Tell you what. Why don't we watch a movie tonight? Your pick."

Rose smiled. "I would like that."

And so they prepared for a movie night. Popcorn was popped, blankets and pillows were moved from the apartment's lone bed, and day clothes were switched out for pajamas. The two girls settled down on the couch and began flipping through the movie catalog. Most of it wasn't even worth watching for free, but Rose paused when a familiar title caught her eyes.

" _Lost Souls of the Ages_..." The small (even for her adult age) blonde turned to her friend. "Remember when you dragged me to see that as kids?"

"It's been a long time. You didn't really like it, if I recall."

"Well, maybe I can give it one more chance." Rose hit the remote to play the movie. As the old film about the two immortal lovers began, Rose watched intently. Before, she had laughed it off as a lousy movie. Now, however, she couldn't help but be engrossed. Juleka, on the other hand, seemed disinterested. Apparently, her nostalgia was not as strong as she had thought.

Finally, the film reached the big ballroom scene, with the two lovers dancing while wearing their fancy costumes. "Domino masks..." Rose admitted. "I never thought they would be so effective in hiding one's identity, and now every superhero in Paris sports one."

"Ladybug and Hawk Moth hadn't appeared yet when we first saw this film," Juleka pointed out. "Amazing how ten years changes your thoughts on something like this." She then had an idea and paused the film so she could whisper it to Rose, who smiled.

* * *

After a bit of rearranging of the furniture to clear some dancing space, Rose and Juleka stood in the middle of the living area, letting the pleasant feeling of each other's company build up. Slow dancing music played from the laptop.

"My princess," Juleka finally began as she dropped to her knee in reverence, "would you take my hand and give me the honor of this dance?"

Rose smiled as her friend offered her hand. "Verily, milady."

With a deep smile, the raven-haired maiden took her friend's hand and led her into a slow ballroom dance, like that in the movie. It was a little tight since the apartment wasn't made for such a thing, but they were able to move around and let themselves fade into the music. Every single step and spin made the two girls feel relaxed and happy, like all the troubles of the world could simply melt away. And as Rose and Juleka danced, they were suddenly surrounded not by black clouds but a pleasant white glow. When it faded, Princess Fragrance and Reflekta were dancing in their place. They did not seem to notice or care.

It was found by Sabrina upon her obtaining the Butterfly Miraculous that positive emotions worked even better than negative emotions in triggering akumatization, and Juleka and Rose had plenty of them in spades. Many of them focused on each other, naturally, but also their friends and their families and just the happiness of living life.

In the end, they were just very close friends... and perhaps something a little more.

* * *

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	13. Blush

Juleka loved seeing Princess Fragrance blush.

Sure, just seeing Rose blush at anytime was adorable, but it was the autumn-toned hue of her reddening cheeks on her green skin that simply made Juleka all smiles. It was like watching an apple ripen before her eyes. Granted, her blushing as Reflekta wasn't so bad, either, but pink-on-white was a bit redundant given how she was already so covered in it. So one day when the two of them were all akumatized up and relaxing in private, she decided to have a bit of fun.

"You know something? You're cute when you blush."

"What?" Princess Fragrance snapped as she fiddled with her perfume-gun. Looking up, she saw Reflekta stand in front of her with one hand on her hip and a big grin on her clown-like face. The two of them were in the attic of a small dilapidated house within one of the less-maintained areas of Paris. The roof leaked and the windows were broken, but it was their little hidey-hole for when they needed to escape the constant annoyances of their current lot in life.

"I'm serious. You ever see yourself blush? It's simply cute."

Fragrance looked a little surprised. "I am not cute!" she pouted. "Who's ever heard of a cute supervillain?"

"Well, given your personality..."

"Reflekta, if we're ever going to get those Miraculouses, we need to actually act the part. When I'm in this role, I'm not Rose the cute little girl. I am Princess Fragrance, and I expect to be treated like royalty."

"I didn't think you'd take this so seriously." The pink jester said with an annoyed sigh. "C'mon, just because we have to play Hawk Moth's game doesn't mean we can't enjoy it some. I mean, look at me." Reflekta raised her hand to her face, causing her wrist-compact to shine as she was bathed in light. A moment later, her clowny self was replaced with that of Prince Ali. "I could be your dream boy whenever you want." She leaned in close, causing Fragrance to lean back nervously. As expected, the first signs of a creeping blush was covering her face.

"Why is it you're never like this when you're not akumatized?" Fragrance challenged, trying not to betray that she was actually enjoying this.

"Dunno, to be honest." 'Ali' shrugged. "Might just be the butterfly, but it's like all the pressure and hesitation just vanishes when I'm Reflekta. So c'mon, Princess. You gonna give your beloved Prince a kiss?" She started making exaggerated kissy-faces.

PFFFT! A blue cloud of mist suddenly shot out of Fragrance's perfume-gun. As soon as it hit 'Ali', she fell backwards onto the floor and went to sleep. "So that's what the blue setting does," she teased as she watched Reflekta's disguise vanish, having lost her conscious ability to hold it. Knowing that she'd stay asleep for a couple hours, Fragrance reached for a blanket from their makeshift cots and draped it over her. She then went back to her gun-fiddling, the blush on her face now a golden-brown as she smiled.

"... It was worth it..." Reflekta sighed as she drifted off with a smile of her own.

* * *

 _Yep, I'm still around with this. I post when the idea hits me._

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	14. Plushies

"Hey, Juleka!" Rose said with her perpetual smile one day while they were sitting down for lunch break. She was carrying a gift bag with her. "You'll never guess what I've brought today."

"Let me guess..." Juleka teased with a smirk. "Fuzzy pink bunny slippers?"

Rose giggled as she reached into the bag and pulled out the items. "TA-DAAAA! Plushies!" There in Rose's hands were tiny stuffed dolls of Reflekta and Princess Fragrance. "There's a store downtown that's selling them. Got these as a two-for-one deal because we're always together. And not just us, either. There's Stoneheart and Stormy Weather and Gamer and all the other Akuma. Neat, huh?"

"You actually bought these?" Juleka's expression turned uncharacteristically cold. "Pretty tasteless, don't you think?"

Rose's smile suddenly turned into a puzzled frown. "What do you mean?" she asked. "I thought you'd be flattered to see us looking so cute like this."

"Think about it. This city is threatened by a supervillain who's seducing emotionally-tormented people into serving his wicked will, and people want to PROFIT off of it? That doesn't strike you as completely unfair?"

"But... but you like being Reflekta."

"I do, but that doesn't give anybody the right to profit off my image, or that of any other Akuma." Juleka glared fiercely at the Reflekta plushie and shouted, "If you like that... that THING so much, maybe you can eat lunch with HER instead!" She got up and left, ignoring the stunned silence of everybody who in all the time they knew Juleka and Rose never once thought they could ever be angry at each other.

The only sound heard was Chloé's mocking laughter, quickly silenced when Sabrina "accidentally" stepped on Chloé's foot... _hard_.

* * *

That night, Reflekta was on the loose with a large chip on her shoulder. She was alone tonight, not even so much as able to look at Rose in either of her forms right now. For a while, she tried to entertain herself with random Reflektifying of pedestrians, but the thrill simply wasn't there anymore and she ended up changing them back just as quickly. Regardless, she knew Ladybug would be coming for her once word got out, so she kept moving.

As she drifted across the roofs randomly, no destination in mind, her eyes noticed a distinctive sign on a street below: AKUMATORIUM. There in the windows were several plushies of the various Akuma. _So that's where she bought them,_ Reflekta deduced as she floated down to the front door. As she looked through the window, she saw shelved filled with Akuma-themed merchandise, from plushies to posters, cosplay outfits and coffee mugs. There were bins of rocks marked as "Stoneheart Pieces", Timebreaker clocks with the speedy Akuma as the various hands, Mr. Pigeon birdcalls and "Bubbler-Brand Bubble Mix". It was enough to make Reflekta both sick to her stomach and ablaze with rage.

The door was locked, but it was no match for Reflekta as she kicked it right off the hinges effortlessly, much to the surprise of the proprietor as he sat at the register counting his day's earnings. She expected him to be a fairly scummy-looking guy, with greased-back black hair and some kind of shady-guy hat like in the movies, but he was rather plain-looking in a handsome way, kind of like Nathaniel except older and wearing glasses.

Ignoring the blaring alarms, Reflekta marched up to the confused man. "The cosplay event is next week," he tried to explain in hopes of maintaining his composure. "Registration will resume tomorrow."

"Cosplay? You think I'm COSPLAYING?!" With a blast of her compact, Reflekta turned the man into a Reflektion. "I can assure you, cosplayers can't do THAT!" He gasped in fright when he realized that this was the real deal. "You listen... um..."

"Jonas."

"Jonas." Reflekta picked Jonas up by his new frilly collar and pinned him against the wall. "I don't know what racket you're trying to pull, but we Akuma are already exploited enough by Hawkmoth, and we don't need scum like you making us feel even worse about ourselves."

Realizing how much trouble he was in now, Jonas gulped. "What... what do you want?"

"Compensation!" A dark and angry glare crossed Reflekta's face. "Every Euro given to every Akuma you've been profiting from, with interest. And if you don't pay up, I'll see to it that you're wearing my face on your deathbed... which may come sooner than you think." Jonas felt his tight rubber pantyhose getting especially warm at this point.

The sound of a body landing behind her made Reflekta turn. There, standing in the doorway, was Ladybug. "I figured it was you," she spoke. "Just had to follow the trail of people complaining about pink jesters."

"Stay out of this, Ladybug," the Akuma replied. "This is a personal matter."

"To be honest, I always did hate this store. Too tacky and loud," Ladybug calmly continued. "But this is not the kind of thing you can solve through brute force. I mean, what would _your friend_ say if she saw this? I know you're not exactly in the right mental state as an Akuma, but at least think of her before you do something you'll truly regret."

For a while, Reflekta seemed to be lost in thought, making both Ladybug and Jonas (mostly Jonas) wonder what she would do next. With a final sigh of defeat, she dropped Jonas and zapped him back to normal, then left through the door. "You want it, you can take it." Reflekta removed her wrist-compact and smashed it on the ground, letting the butterfly loose as she went down an alley so she could de-akumatize in private.

As she caught the butterfly in her yo-yo, Ladybug simply stood there perplexed. _I never thought Juleka would take this so personally,_ she realized, _and poor Rose must be just as upset to lose her best friend._ Since not even the Miraculous Ladybug Restoration could undo this kind of damage, she wondered if there was anything Marinette could do instead. Like for starters, shutting down this despicable store. _Perhaps Alya might be able to find something about licensing laws._

* * *

For a while, it seemed like Juleka and Rose would never make up with each other. Juleka would not look at her or sit with her or even be seen with her, and Rose never looked sadder in her life. It was so miserable a sight that nobody (not even Chloé) could even so much as say a word about it.

Then word got out that the Akumatorium was shut down for failure to obtain the proper licenses, to which Ms. Bustier's entire class couldn't help but cheer over, but the real victory came when Juleka went over to Rose's table at lunch carrying a small bag. "Hey," she quietly greeted.

Rose looked up and managed a soft "Hey" in response. For a minute, they said nothing. Finally, Rose looked up. "Are... are you still angry at me?"

"A little," Juleka replied, "but I'll get over it. I just needed some time to think." She then reached into the bag. "And I got something you might like better than those awful things."

The sound of Rose's joyous squeal could almost make dogs howl as she saw what it was. It was plushies of Juleka and Rose as themselves. "AWWWWW, they're soooo CUTE!" she screamed in pure delight.

"Marinette made them. She said she wanted us to be friends again." For the first time in a while, Juleka smiled. "These plushies are how I want us to truly be remembered as." And as the two of them embraced in a happy hug, Marinette watched from her corner with a smile of her own.

* * *

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	15. Idle Banter

One lazy weekend, Juleka, Rose, Alix, and Mylène were sitting under a tree in a park, simply enjoying a chance to relax and chat about whatever came to mind. Boys, school, superheroes. Eventually, the topic of interest changed to Akuma, of which there was no shortage of debates and anecdotes to share.

"So Replay and I were pretty much tearing the gym apart," Alix recounted. "You should've seen it. The whole place looked like that weird painting with all the twisted staircases because time and space were getting warped in our crossfire. Good thing Ladybug fixed it, because even I was getting a migraine trying to keep it all straight in my head."

Rose looked at Alix with a bit of confusion. "All that just to prove yourself better than him?"

"He started it. Claimed he was much better at controlling time than I was, and who was I to turn down a bet?" There was actually a hint of pride in Alix's voice. "Well, I won in the end, so he's got nothing left to stand on. Word has it Hawk Moth's gonna de-power him for good since he feels two time-controllers are redundant."

"Lucky him... but why not you?" asked Mylène.

"Probably because he knows that Ladybug is reluctant to fight us for some reason," Rose answered. "And that makes us too valuable to simply drop."

"Makes sense to me. He already knew how to exploit our emotions, so he exploits hers as well." Juleka shrugged. Her expression then turned dark. "Wonder what would happen if SHE got akumatized?"

"Let's hope we never find out, or else we'll never get out of this mess," came Alix's reply. "But with all this talk about our... other selves, there's one thing I've never been able to figure out. Juleka, you're always so gloomy and quiet, so why would you become someone as loud and bright as Reflekta?"

Juleka was about to say something, but nothing came out as she realized what Alix had stated. "I... I've never really thought about that, to be honest."

"We all got turned into Akuma based on our personalities," Alix explained. "I mean, I love rollerblading and I valued my watch, so I became Timebreaker. Rose has her love of fairy-tales and she had that perfume, so she became Princess Fragrance. Mylène, she wanted to conquer what made her scared, so... well..." Mylène whimpered a bit at the bad memory. "Sorry. But Reflekta is nothing like you in the least. Where in your personality does a jester covered head to toe in bright pink rubber come from?"

"Well, it makes people turn and notice me," Juleka began. "The whole reason I became Reflekta was that I felt ignored and wanted to stand out in a crowd, and then I decided somewhere that they should all look like me so they too stand out."

Mylène looked a bit confused at that. "But if everybody looks like you, wouldn't that defeat the whole purpose?" she asked. "I mean, who's going to even know who's who anymore, let alone who's you?"

"And it's not like you can even control them like other Akuma can when they create minions," Alix added. "You have to rely on Fragrance for that sort of thing, so on your own, you don't have much to fall back on."

"Hey, I'll have you know I'm quite strong and can even fly somewhat," came Juleka's defensive reply. "More of a hovering glide, but it's something."

"The point still stands, though." Alix turned to face the dark-haired girl directly. "Juleka, why out of all the Akuma you could have been, you picked the one most unlike you?"

Before she could answer, Rose suddenly leaned in close to Juleka. "You wanna know why I think she became Reflekta?" she stated teasingly. "I think deep down, she wanted to be a princess, too."

Juleka blinked a bit, then shrugged and leaned back as she stroked Rose's head while she cuddled up. "Yeah, let's go with that." Alix rolled her eyes, annoyed at the mushy sight. Mylène simply giggled at seeing the two girls being so close and so content with each other's company.

* * *

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


	16. First Kiss(?)

"Kissou!" Rose squealed in delight as she suddenly jumped onto Juleka and gave her a great big smooch on her lips. Juleka pushed her off, then covered her lips in realization of what just happened.

Staring back at her friend in shock, Juleka wanted to speak her thoughts, but she knew Rose wouldn't reply even if she heard them. Her mind was completely gone as she started towards the rest of their friends on the bus. Juleka felt her own mind going as well, everything being overwhelmed by thoughts of love and hugs and kisses... so many kisses... so many lovely kisses to give and give and give give _give **giveGI** **VE!**_

If it were under better circumstances, Juleka and Rose would have considered it bliss.

* * *

Thankfully, Ladybug averted Paris's very first zombie apocalypse and everybody was returned to normal. All things considered, it was one of the better Hawk Moth incidents. For one day, everybody was able to put their hatred aside and come together in love and harmony like Miss Bustier always wanted. Her students even wondered if she accepted her akumatization knowing this would happen.

That said, not all the former zombies felt fully cured of their lovesickness yet. "One to come aboard!" called out Rose from the dock where the Couffaine houseboat was moored. Juleka's mom was always happy to get a visit from Rose and so she let her board. After greeting her and Luka, Rose went below deck to meet with Juleka as she sat at her laptop. "Hey, Juleka. Feeling alright after yesterday?"

"Same as always," Juleka greeted quietly without looking up from the laptop. It was set to the Ladyblog, where Alya was livestreaming her recap of the Zombizou incident. "So, you going to kiss me hello or what?"

Rose rolled her eyes at that greeting. Juleka had been teasing her about what happened on the bus all through the rest of yesterday. "I told you, I was zombified. There was nothing serious about it."

"I know," Juleka replied. "Though it almost seemed like you wanted to do it even before the effect started."

"Don't be crazy." Rose immediately defended. "You're a friend. A very, very good friend, but I love everybody and everything. I don't play favorites."

"Then explain Prince Ali."

"He is a very caring boy that's full of love and compassion, like me."

"I see." Juleka didn't sound very convinced. "So, nothing serious about it, right?"

Rose shook her head in confidence. "Nope."

"Alright then." Juleka closed her laptop and turned to face Rose. "Kiss me."

"What?"

"I mean it. I want you to kiss me," Juleka challenged. "Exactly as you did on the bus."

This came as a total surprise to Rose. "But I... I could never do that," she admitted. "You... you're just my friend."

"You love everybody, right? Well, prove to me how much you show that love."

Seeing as how she was not going to let it go, Rose approached Juleka with a blush and kissed her on the lips. Juleka returned the kiss in kind, their lips tenderly touching each other for what felt like an eternity but was more along the lines of five seconds before they parted again.

The kiss over, Juleka paused to feel herself, then sighed. "Eh, I guess not," she finally admitted. "Perhaps it was just Zombizou after all."

"Yeah... it was," Rose agreed. "So, no more kissy-talk from now on?"

"Deal. See you at class."

"Okay." Rose turned and left, giving her regards to Juleka's family on her way off the boat. Though she seemed calm and collected, Rose was mentally berating herself for not admitting how she really felt for her longtime friend. The truth was that she did willingly kiss Juleka before Zombizou overtook her, having hoped that acting like a love-zombie before becoming one would hide her true intention under the dire circumstances. Rose wanted to go out knowing her kiss for Juleka was genuine, even if Juleka remained unaware.

As she returned to her laptop, however, Juleka smiled. _Yep... exactly as she did on the bus,_ she thought to herself. It seems Rose wasn't the only one who could hide her feelings, either.

* * *

 _Miraculous (c) ZAG_


End file.
